Wild Souls: Operation Bermuda
Wild Souls: Operation Bermuda, alternatively Operation Bermuda, is the second part of Wild Souls. ''The arc spans 20 chapters, is preceded by ''Infinite Frontier, ''and is followed by ''Criaturo Nocturno. Some months after the events of the previous book, high-schooler Basil Newman adjusts to a new life in a coastal town known as Jetty Island, after losing most of his memories in an unknown event that happened prior. In the process of fitting in and becoming friends with his classmates as well as the townspeople, he seeks out the causes of a series of strange occurrences, including the recurring appearances of a mysterious and dangerous individual who is set on locating an unknown object at all costs. In addition, the story also details Marcus Kurt's investigation of former Collective member Debach Crudal, who has been linked to the uses of a certain drug known as "Hell's Rose", which artificially inflates a user's Animal-Spirit power at the cost of their mental fortitude, as well as having the capacity to "awaken" an Animal-Spirit in a non-user. In his investigation, he is helped by Blevin '''and '''Momo, whose friends have been sent into comas by hit-and-runs involving Hell's-Rose infused weapons. Plot Summary My Name Is Peter McGuire In the fictional coastal town of Jetty Island, stated to be somewhere along the Mediterranean, teenager Basil Newman attempts to adjust to his new life as a citizen of the town. Basil is afflicted with severe amnesia, and is unable to remember the majority of his former life, such as the identity of his family or the location of his original home. In a self-told flashback, Basil states he was left at the local train station with nothing but a suitcase of clothes and basic necessities, along with an anonymous note telling "the people in charge" to "keep him safe". Basil was subsequently taken to the police station, where any personal records (such as fingerprints, his date of birth, etc.) of his existence were found to be nonexistent. Afterward, the police asked him to leave a fingernail for carbon dating in order find his age, then turned him over to social services, who promised him they would find a foster home in a week. In the meantime, he was enrolled at the local high school - Jetty High School of the Arts (JHSA). Within a few days, he was issued a school uniform, a schedule, and a list of required materials. The flashback then ends, revealing that Basil is on his way to his first day at the school. Despite his situation, he maintains an optimistic outlook on his new life. Blackfish In a dark and stormy city, a young man, whose face is concealed by a raincoat, is chased through an alley a group of anti-fascists. He manages to evade them until he is ensnared by one of the gang member's Animal-Spirits (presumably a species of lizard). The boy activates his own Animal-Spirit in defense, revealed to be a Porcupine. Although he fights his captor off, the boy is quickly recaptured by the rest of the gang, who tear off his raincoat. The boy is revealed to be Dakubraz Serdi, former Collective member. The anti-fascists tell him it was the Collective responsible for numerous attacks on innocents to which Daku responds that he knew. His captors take this as an confession of collusion, and prepare to beat him unconscious. They are stopped, however, by an unknown assailant, who wields an Animal-Spirit composed of four psychic tentacles; they are dragged off into the darkness and quickly silenced. Once the danger is gone, the individual, also clad in a raincoat, steps out into the light and helps Daku to his feet, asking if he is injured. Daku responds that he isn't, wanting to know who the individual (presumably male from their build) is. The man responds that he cannot show his face yet, but asks if Daku trusts him enough to come with him to safety. After a brief musing, Daku agrees and the two disappear down another alley. Rubber Girl Basil arrives at JHSA and attempts to makes his way through a crowd of students to his classroom. After some trouble, he manages to succeed, following his schedule to Classroom E - 1. On his way up the stairs, however, he is knocked to the side by a separate group of students, who are rushing downstairs, and is sent flying backwards down the steps. He breaks his fall, however, by landing on another student accidentally. Basil shakes his head to steady himself, only to find out that the student he landed on was a girl, which embarrasses him immensely. Before he can apologize, however, the girl has already gotten to her feet, asking if he is okay. Confused, Basil is helped up by the girl, who introduces herself as Abby Fenton. When Basil inquires how she is barely fazed by him falling on top of her from such at height, she explains that her Animal-Spirit is the Rubber Boa, which grants her body the consistency of dense rubber. As such, she is immune to most blunt force trauma. Abby asks if Basil is new to town, as she's never seen him before. Basil responds yes, that he is, having enrolled at the school only today. Abby then cheerily offers to show him to Classroom E - 1, to which Basil gladly accepts. Along the way, Abby tells Basil that she was also placed in Classroom E - 1, as were many of her friends. She then asks Basil what his Animal-Spirit is, to which Basil has no answer, realizing that he has forgotten on account of amnesia. Sanctuary The masked individual leads Daku through the alleyways to a convenience store parking lot, where another masked person stands next to a escape car whose engine is already running. The second masked person complains that the first took longer than usual before getting into the car, while the first person simply sighs before climbing into the front passenger seat. Daku flatly refuses to get into the car until he knows who they are. When the first masked individual tries to explain that they aren't in the right place to reveal something like that, Daku awakens his Animal-Spirit and threatens to attack them if they do not comply. In response, the masked man uses his own Animal-Spirit to bind and restrict Daku and force him into the backseat. The second masked individual then quickly puts Daku to sleep using their Animal-Spirit. After they pull out of the parking lot, the two remove their masks, revealing themselves as Blevin Walters '''(possessor of the Animal-Spirit '''Octopus) and Momo Hertz '''(possessor of '''Rosy Moth). Blevin then orders Momo to drive to the "safe house". Daku awakens on a couch in an apartment building, and is greeted by Blevin and Momo, in casual clothes. He asks where he is, and is told he is "safe". Daku is also greeted by Joe '''and '''Alex, other former Collective members who hold the Animal-Spirits Warthog and Scorpion,' '''and who are hiding out in the apartment as well'. Daku grumpily questions why they would rescue him instead of arresting him, to which Blevin responds that it was because he wasn't responsible for his actions as a Collective member, as was previously thought. Classroom E-1 Abby shows Peter along the halls to Classroom E-1, where quite a few other students are present. Abby informs Peter that Classroom E-1 has no seating chart, so he is free to sit wherever he wishes. Basil, after a moment's thought, sits next to Abby, citing the fact that he knows no one else. Abby's friends then introduce themselves as '''Sally Hershell '''and '''Liza Chatel. '''After the first bell rings, the rest of the class (fourteen students in all) fills in, some greeting Basil, others asking who he is, and some ignoring him. Shortly after, the second ball rings. However, there is no teacher to be found. Basil wonders if he is sleeping under the desk, but finds nothing there. Suddenly, the rightmost window is opened from the outside, and a man tumbles in. Basil notices several things about his appearance: he is wearing sunglasses, out-of-shape, and dressed in cargo shorts and a Hawaiian-print shirt. His hair is messily dreaded and his lower face is concealed by an unkempt beard. Without saying a word, the man gets up, walks over to the teacher's desk, picks up the teacher's chair, and throws it out of the window he climbed through. He then places a beach chair next to the desk and sits down, introducing himself as '''Jeff Lebowski, Classroom E-1's teacher. After a brief pause, he reaches over and grabs an attendance sheet from the desk, calling out and checking off the names of the students: Madison Brooks, Liza Chatel, Abby Fenton, Liberty Freedman, Sally Hershell, Ken Hanzo, Denjirou Hayato, Mei Kurozaki, Jake Quinn, Taylor Nealy, Teyo Stevenson, and Sai Takenaka. Mr. Lebowski then surprises the class by stating that they are welcoming not only one but two new students: Basil Newman as well as a boy named Stephen Thurman, '''who has slipped into the room without anyone apparently noticing. The Midnight Knocker Momo explains to Daku that a discovery was made: that numerous Collective "members" were not in control of their own actions. Daku snaps that he already knew this, and that it was due to the efforts of Collective operative '''Clistopyga, whose Animal-Spirit injected unwilling Collective members with parasitic buds that controlled their minds. Blevin states that Daku isn't wrong in saying this, but it is nevertheless half of the whole story. When Daku asks what she means, Blevin explains that Clistopyga's buds, analyzed after his capture, were not powerful enough to control strong-minded people. This went against two facts: that numerous Collective members had powerful Animal-Spirits, and the strength of an Animal-Spirit correlates to the strength of the user's mind. Therefore, since many of the Collective members were powerful, strong-minded people, they couldn't have been controlled solely by Clistopyga's buds. Blevin's conclusion, therefore, was that either the flesh buds' power was being enhanced, or the minds of the Collective members were being diminished. He isn't sure which conclusion is correct, however, and is more focused on helping the innocent Collective members "disappear" from unjust persecution. Momo then gives Daku a backpack containing new clothes, food, and basic utilities, as well as new identification to help him disappear until his, Sal's, and others' names are cleared. Daku asks where they are getting the money to do something like this, to which Momo replies that she and Blevin, as well as all the others who fought in the raid against the Collective HQ, receive monthly financial compensations. Daku begrudgingly thanks them, and then goes to bed, as do Joe and Alex. Momo congratulates Blevin on saving another "lost boy", to which Blevin laughs. Momo then invites him into the living room to unwind by watching television. After getting drinks and a bag of chips, the two sit for a few hours until Momo falls asleep. Blevin quietly places a blanket over her before going into the bathroom to brush his teeth. Halfway through, he hears a knock on the door, and unwittingly opens it before checking the peephole. In the doorway is none other than Marcus Kurt, to whom Blevin promptly slams the door in fear. First Period - The Beach Mr. Lebowski explains to Basil and Stephen by way of the entire class that unlike Classrooms A - D, Classroom E-1 operates on its own schedule. He then turns to the class and asks them to vote on which subject they would like to take first for the day: science, mathematics, history, literature, or specials. Science wins the vote, whereupon Mr. Lebowski ushers them up and out the classroom door. Basil asks Abby where he is taking them, and she shushes him, whispering that he'll find out soon. Basil, slightly confused, follows Abby and the rest of the class through the school, and out a back door. They continue until they are far enough away from the school to talk in normal voices. Mr. Lebowski then tells them to stay follow him and that they will not be stopping if anyone "lags behind". When Basil asks where they are going, Sally replies "the beach". Basil thinks to himself that it's rather odd that they are going to the beach without swimwear, but says nothing. Once they reach the beach, Mr. Lewboski takes his beach chair out and sets it in the sand before sitting down. Taking out a newspaper, he splits up the class into pairs, with Basil being partnered with Sai. Mr Lebowski then tells them they have an hour to find a local species of coastal plant or animal, and hands out worksheets listing criteria that each student must fill in to the best of their ability. Basil introduces himself personally to Sai, who returns the gesture quickly before immediately beckoning Basil to follow him, as he knows the "best places to find starfish", which he plans to fill out the assignment on. Peter asks him where the place is, to which Sai responds that they are located mostly in the rock formations. Peter is cautious, but when asking Sai how he plans to get through the precarious area, Sai simply responds by summoning his Animal-Spirit Bald Eagle and effortlessly flying over the rocks. This surprises Basil, who is reminded that he is without an Animal-Spirit. Hell's Rose The sound of Blevin slamming the door wakes up Momo, who in a panic, asks what is going on. Blevin, pressed against the door, whispers that Marcus Kurt is at the door. Momo, hyperventilating, asks what they're going to do. Blevin